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Irish cricket
Simmons delight at Warwickshire scalp
Cricinfo staff
May 17, 2008
Phil Simmons, the Ireland coach, says it was pleasing to see his team put together an all-round performance in their victory over Warwickshire in the Friends Provident Trophy, one of the most impressive results since Simmons took over as coach following last year's World Cup.
William Porterfield's 69 led then to a four-wicket success at Stormont and Simmons said it marked a significant moment for a young team. "It's great to see this young team get a victory under their belts, especially against a strong county side," he said. "We've played good cricket at times during this Friends Provident Trophy campaign, but today was the first time that we combined all the three elements of batting, bowling and fielding, and you see the result. It's always pleasing for a coach when you get a performance like that."
Simmons was especially pleased with the performances of some of the new players as Ireland go through a transitional phase following the loss of some key World Cup stars including captain Trent Johnston and opening bowler David Langford-Smith.
"The beauty about this competition is that you can let the players have a good run to see what they are made of. Guys can get a good run of five or six matches, so there isn't the immediate pressure of them needing to score runs in their first few games," Simmons said.
"I know what these players can do, having seen them all winter, and they are now showing what they are capable of. We're obviously missing a lot of our more established players, but the players who've come in have shown their ability, and that can only be good for the depth and strength of the squad as we face some huge tournaments in the months ahead."
Porterfield, who has a county deal with Gloucestershire, but has taken over as Ireland captain, was equally pleased with the team performance. "We got wickets early on and the spinners really squeezed it in the middle overs. 211 on that track was a great effort. The way Reinhardt Strydom and Paul Stirling came out and batted meant we were never really under pressure. It was not easy, but we knew if we kept going at three, four runs an over we would get home."
"Now we have a great chance against Leicestershire. They're coming to our back yard. We'll be playing on the same wicket, we know what's going to happen. The belief in the changing room from the Nottinghamshire game to today has gone up massively."
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